We’re blessed in Carlow to have a strong and active network of groups and the commitment to work with and not against one another is palpable. Take some of the small business’ and destinations we came across on our bloggers tour for example:

#TasteCarlow Tour

Bianka from Carlow Tours, our chauffeur and guide for the bloggers day, is flying one of many flags for Carlow. She’s not only created a small business for herself, but in doing so, Carlow Tours are attracting visitors to the county which helps other business’ to thrive.

Bianca’s enthusiasm and passion for Carlow is infectious as she shares myths and tales of our local history and heritage, ensuring that ancestors communities aren’t forgotten either.

Duckett’s Grove

Thanks to Carlow Council, like other old houses and estates Duckett’s Grove have opened the gardens, buildings, stables and outbuildings to crafters, tea rooms and a visitor centre. Owners of country houses are realising that we enjoy poking around different shops and buildings along with taking tours and tea in their gardens and houses, giving them the wherewithal to keep the premises open and also providing small business’ with a home and an opportunity to delight us with their wares. It’s a collaboration that seems to be working well for everyone.

Carlow Farmers Market

Carlow Farmers Market, like many others around the country, support and promote each other. Our local market traders meet every Saturday in the Potato Mart in the centre of Carlow town, selling locally grown, produced and packaged food. The growers and retailers encourage and fly another Carlow flag for good, tasty, often organic, wholesome food. They also provided a tasty picnic for the bloggers on our tour, giving the group the opportunity to sample of some of the tasty treats on offer in Carlow, from bread, cheese, fruit and meat to pickles, crackers, juices and beer.

Taste of Carlow Food & Craft Fair

The Taste of Carlow Food and Craft Festival is a two-day event, the first taking place in August, the second in December. Here, traders around the county and beyond are encouraged to take a space and show us what they can offer. From the Carlow Farmers Market regulars to toy sellers, food stands, eco trails, artists, bungee trampoliners, facepainters, crafters and more, they encourage the community to visit, meet, play, shop and spend.

Malone’s Fruit Farm

Given my love of fresh food I’m almost ashamed to reveal that I’ve never called into Malone Fruit Farm shop having driven past it countless times, but that’s set to change. From when you first walk through the doorway, the little shop is a delightful emporium of food, crafts, locally grown, locally made, artisan, free range, frozen, fresh… I could go on and on, it really is a treasure and if you’ve ever dreamed about owning a farm shop, Malone’s is one you’ll definitely want to visit to get a feel for the best they have to offer.

Huntington Castle

The owners of Huntington Castle have opened their home and gardens to encourage visitors to look around, drink tea and eat cake. For years the house was a the central point of the community, employing locals, acting as a garrison then in later years, opening up to a global community as the foundation centre for the Fellowship of Isis. Nowadays they offer their home and gardens up for people to visit and tour, as accommodation, as a venue, either for private events or more public ones such as vintage fairs, where stallholders can sell their goods to interested shoppers.

Resilient Community Building

For all my positivity, I’m a realist too. It has to be acknowledged that as well as supporting one another, groups can get caught up in nitpicky and destructive habits, but where does that lead us? Disjointed, disfunctional, hurt, frightened and fragmented. Yet as these few examples have shown, by simply working together and encouraging one another, we can breed optimism and success. I know which road I prefer to travel along. How about you?

[…] potential as an eco-destination. Then I helped to put a group of bloggers together for the recent Taste of Carlow festival where we met several local food producers and visited a commercial fruit farm. For now […]

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Who is Behind Greenside Up

Hi, my name is Dee Sewell, social and therapeutic horticulturalist, owner/manager of Greenside Up, community and vegetable garden tutor and author of this blog.
I began blogging back in 2009 when I started my Carlow/Kilkenny garden business and as a result the blog is now full of tips, tales, talk and tasty treats about Ireland, gardening, recipes, the environment, family life and community.
If you want to find more about how we came to live in Ireland and what we do, take a look in the About page or Contact me about how I can help you grow your own food.

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Testimonials

Dee is one in a million. She shares her knowledge with many and has a very loyal following for her community garden work, training workshops and social media postings .

Bryan Leech, Owner, Kilgraney House, Co Carlow

Dee is dedicated & passionate about her business and has great ideas how to benefit organisations through the use of horticulture.

Brian Andrews, ID8

Super course delivered in a very relaxed style

Margaret Brennan, Leighlin Parish Garden

This is a very good and easy to understand guide for both the beginner and for those needing a refresher course to get started

Tullow Family Resource Centre Gardener

Dee has given me lots of knowledge and skills to get out and get my garden sorted. Maybe I can be nearly as good as my Dad was. He grew everything have lots of memories of harvesting fruit and veg as a child. Now it’s time for me to create similar memories for my own kids. Thanks for the know how and somewhat shaky confidence. Really looking forward to lots more gardening and harvesting. Thanks again – Verena Butler, Hugginstown

Dee has a wealth of experience and knowledge about horticulture and she is passionate about helping and encouraging others to grow their own food.

Madeleine O'Keeffe, Owner The Tea Rooms at Duckett's Grove

I am in constant awe of Dee’s commitment and creativity to bring green issues into the mainstream and to include all of us in her vision. Her knowledge and skill in leading her business is rooted firmly in a grassroots approach to her work and a unique approach to spreading the word.

Catherine Drea, Foxglove Lane Studios

I recently attended a beginners workshop with Dee. Needing a basic guide to starting a home garden, we were reassured by her easy manner and the jargon free language. She introduced us to the basics of soil, plants, light and shade and shared some of her own gardening successes and failures. This workshop gave me the confidence to start digging!

MaryCarlow.

All I can say is that I fell on this course totally by accident and I am so happy as I thoroughly enjoyed it, loved all that we did and I have come away with a better knowledge of how to select, plant and hopefully produce good vegetable crops – Carmel Fennelly, Ballyhale